Late August, a battery of the defence system was assembled in the greater Tel Aviv area, pointing northwards towards Syria. Israeli media have reported that six or seven such batteries are currently in use, according to AFP.

Speaking at a cabinet meeting Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Israel "an island of tranquillity, quiet and security" amidst "the storm raging around us". He did not mention Syria or its ally Iran.

The Israeli government stance on Syria was reiterated Sunday by Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon, who, at a counter-terrorism conference in Herzliya, north of Tel Aviv, said: "We are not involved in the civil war in Syria unless our interests are compromised," according to AFP.

"We are preparing for the ramification of action - or inaction - in Syria," he noted.

"To our understanding, our neighbours, especially the Syrian regime, understands that whoever challenges us will encounter the power of the IDF (Israeli military), and we are preparing for that."

Yaalon told reporters that "we held a security assessment today", and that Israel was not reverting to a heightened level of alert over the Syrian conflict.